Dropping heavily onto the bench at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall, Sean let out a breath and immediately dug into his food with knife and fork. He had spent the entire afternoon writing his paper, yet had produced less than a finger's length. It had cost him as many brain cells as a Potions Club class, and he was truly starving now.
Blaise, sitting across from him, looked at Sean and shook his head helplessly. "Now I've seen what someone who's more exhausted after an exam than before one looks like."
"Couldn't be helped. The paper the Head of House asked me to write... uh..." Before Sean could finish, he choked on his food. He hurriedly thumped his chest several times and took a huge gulp of Pumpkin Juice before finally swallowing it down. Letting out a breath, he continued, "The paper the Head of House asked me to write is very important, and the requirements are high. If I want to finish it as soon as possible, I have to spend a lot of time working on it."
"Come to think of it, can the paper the Head of House asked you to write really be published in The Golden Cauldron?"
"He didn't say for certain, but there should be a chance."
A trace of admiration appeared on Blaise's face, half for the journal The Golden Cauldron, and half for Sean, his good brother.
Seeing Blaise's expression, Sean bared his teeth and said in disgust, "Don't make that face at me. It's seriously gross, and I'm eating."
"This is The Golden Cauldron! The most prestigious journal in Potions! My mum subscribes to it every month, and my best friend is already able to publish articles in it!"
Shaking his head with a laugh, Sean said, "Can you